Chocolate & Bubblegum
by Don'tTickleTheSleepingDragon
Summary: Collection of stories about Remus and Tonks and their relationship. Different tales vary from happy to sad, fluff to angst and hopefully sometimes funny.
1. Sweets In The Library

**SWEETS IN THE LIBRARY**

Libraries should be ideal places for concentration and study.

But in the library of twelve, Grimmauld Place, where I have come with my parchments dealing with various important Order matters, and which I should perusing, I find my focus slip and my mind wander. Might be that the academic atmosphere of the somber room lined with bookshelves is somewhat dampened by the other occupant besides myself in the room.

Nymphadora Tonks is reclining on the sofa opposite of my armchair, a quill in hand, scribbling a report for the Auror office. Her vivid coloured clothes and spiky pink hair really stand out in the drab, old room of the Noble House of Black . She lies there, a stack of parchments on her lap and beside her, a box of Bertie Bott's Every Flavour Beans.

I really should study the parchments, but I would much rather study her; she's fascinating. The way she seems to switch from serious Auror to silly young witch is seamless; For a minute or two, she writes intently, a small crease between her eyebrows. And then, suddenly, she pauses, and reaches in to the bag of sweets, and with an easy grin flicks one to her mouth.

Her reactions to the whatever she's tasting are equally intriguing, varying from a happy little sigh and smile when she has discovered a pleasant treat, to a quite amusing small shudder and roll of eyes, when the taste isn't to her liking.

And as I watch her, I cannot help but wish I could share the good flavours with her, and kiss the bad away.

My heart skips a beat when she suddenly raises her gaze from the latest bean she'd been carefully observing and meets my eyes.

 _Did she catch me staring at her?_

 _She cannot know what I'm thinking, can she?_

But she only smiles at me and says:

"Here, I think that's a chocolate one"

She tosses the bean to me, and somehow I manage to catch it. I bite into it and a taste of mildewy earth fills my mouth.

"Ugh, dirt" I say, very eloquently.

Her laughter is thrilling, and I feel unexplainable happy even with the taste of mud in my mouth.

 ** _A/N: Hi! Welcome to my Remus/Tonks collection of short(ish) stories varying from happy to sad, and hopefully sometimes funny. I, of course do not own the characters or any other recognizable things, I'm just borrowing :)_**

 ** _Hopefully you enjoyed this first chapter, and please leave a review ;)_**


	2. Her Kiss

**HER KISS**

One of the worst parts about living in a werewolf colony, the one you didin't even at first realise, was the fact there was so much time to think.

Think of her.

Remus leaned his back against a tree and stared up to the sky; it was getting dark, the stars were starting to come out. He was sitting in the outskirts of the camp; most of the other werewolves were sitting around a huge, merrily crackling bonfire and making quite a ruckus. Remus felt more comfortable being at a certain distance away from the others, even if that meant he was quite cold and there was nothing more to do than to watch shadows grow more and more prominent around him. And of course think of her.

 _Nymphadora Tonks._

Remus let her name roll on his tongue for the thousandht time. The name was like a spell, conjuring up image of a young witch with everchanging hair and a glorious smile that filled his heart with an intense longing. Oh, how he wished to hear her voice again, her laughter.

All the memories he had of her came rushing back. They all featured the same brave, funny, clever and absolutely amazing woman he had quite foolishly let himself fall in love with. The same woman who had admitted she loved him back. The same woman he had had to leave behind, because he could not be with her.

He knew he had done the right thing to refuse her, for her own sake. But even if he listed all the reasons why he could not be with her (too old, too poor, too dangerous...), why it was better the way it was, she would not leave his head, and his mind would not stop creating different of scenarious where he'd be with her, teasing him with all kind of ridiculous romantic thoughts.

It was really her fault, you know:

She had kissed him.

Only once, but she had done it. And it was making him go crazy, because it had been everything he had dreamed of it to be.

And it could never happen again. He knew that perfectly well but that didin't stop him replaying the kiss (the only kiss he would ever have with her, he reminded himself, unhappilly) over and over again in his head.

 _He had been packing the last of the meagre things he had at Grimmauld Place, when he had heard her unmistakable stumble on the stairs. He knew it was her. From her steps, from her smell. Without even raising his eyes from his luggage, he said:_

" _We have been over this so many times, Nymphadora-"_

 _But instead the usual slide of reasonings why they should be together, why the various problems he had presented to her were solvable, Nympahadora had walked briskly to him without as much as a word. And before he realised what was happening, she had risen to the balls of her feet, stared into his eyes for a split second and then without a warning, crushed her lips to his._

 _It had taken him completely by surprise._

 _For a moment he was frozen, unable to move a muscle. And just as he was beginning to comprehend what was happening and had instinctively begun to reciprocate the kiss, exhilarated, savouring every second, she had broken away._

 _Just as surprised, he had opened his eyes and saw her give him a pointed look, before storming away._

 _He had stared after her a long time after that, tentatively stroking his lips which had burned with longing to have hers against them again._

It had felt so good, so right. What if he was exaggerating the complexities of their possible relationship? What if she was right, and they could overcome all the obstacles? What if it was possible for him to experience yet again that wondrous feeling of having her close to him?

But before he could let himself to truly reconsider his actions, he happened to turn his gaze to the other werewolves, and saw Fenrir Greyback sink his yellow, stained teeth into a chunck of meat. Greyback felt his eyes and flashed him a ravenous, malicious grin.

 _No,_ Remus thought.

No, he could not allow himself to be near Tonks. That would only put her in danger. He would not, _could not_ , be that selfish. That would not be fair to her.

And after all wasn't this where he belonged? With other outcasts, other monsters.

 **A/N: Thanks for reading! I'll try update next time sooner, but meanwhile you can go and read my two other RL/NT stories I have on this site, and of course leave me a review telling what you think about my little tales ;) Apologies for any mistakes you spot, English is not my native language.**


	3. Over The Threshold

**OVER THE THRESHOLD**

After Apparating from the tavern to the countryside, we stall for a moment on the grassy hill overlooking the small cottage. There it is: our first home as newlyweds. I look at Remus, _my husband_ , and see on his face the same overwhelming giddiness that I feel inside.

We have been so lucky to find the place with things being the way they are; the war is going on all around us. The wooden cottage is tiny, and far from luxurious, but it is ours. And having secured the grounds and the house with every possible protecting spell there is and hiding it the best way we can, it is quite safe too.

And I cannot wait to share it with Remus.

So we make our way down the hill, hand in hand, towards the married life.

After we get the locks undone and open the door, I make a move to enter the cottage. To my surprise, Remus stops me by grasping my arm. I raise a questioning eyebrow, and he explains with a sheepish grin:

"I want to do this right"

He then bends down and swiftly hoists me into his arms. Taking a step forward, he approaches the doorway. And then-

His foot gets caught on the doorstep, and he stumbles. I fly from his arms to the floor of our hallway, and he follows, only managing to stop himself from falling on top of me by planting his hands each side of my head.

"So _that's_ how it is done properly, eh, Professor?" I can't help but tease.

He blushes ever so lightly, but soon recovers, and says:

"Ah… I believe it's true then; the company one keeps, makes one alike"

 _That cheeky git!_

The best revenge, I decide, is to pull his smirking face down to mine and kiss him so fervently he cannot possibly make up more wisecracks.

I think we have a great marriage in the making.

 **A/N: This one takes place right after their wedding, if that's not clear from the story. When I was writing this I tried to find the English counterpart for the Finnish idiom "Seura tekee kaltaisekseen", literally translating into "Company makes one alike", and meaning that you start to resemble the people you spend a lot of time with. I was bit surprised when I could not find a clear equivalent for the idiom. Somehow I found this instead: "Live with wolves and you'll learn to howl" (which appears in closer inspection to be a Spanish idiom, and might not mean the same thing..) I don't think Remus would be comfortable using such a phrase, so I hope the one used in the story will do :)**


	4. Uncertainty

**UNCERTAINTY**

 _Is he allright? Is he even alive? Dear Merlin, let him be fine_ I think feverishly as I run through the castle to the Dumbledore's office. The rumour has it Greyback has attacked someone. I don't know who. And it's driving me crazy. I have to find someone who knows something. And Dumbledore usually knows. But when I get there and see that the headmaster is not there, I feel like my legs may give out.

He's not here. And I have no idea how Remus is. The dread I feel even thinking about him is almost unbearable.

I start to aimlessly walk the school corridors, promising myself to return to my post the minute I get a little better grip on myself. No use of an Auror who's verge on tears, right?

Uncertainty is my worst enemy, it has always been. When you're uncertain mind tends to conjure up the worst images. And because you don't know, it isn't easy to overlook the fears, because it _could_ happen. Tiny and sometimes not-so-tiny chance that the thing you fear will come reality is torturous. And you can't do anything about it. That's why I love taking part in the action. Battlefields don't scare me, because at least there I'm doing something. But when you are uncertain of the outcome and only thing you can do is wait and see, that's why this is so nervewracking to me.

On this post, I feel so useless and all my fears feed on that uncertainty. The rumours one hears don't help the matter. It only intensifies the horrible feeling of not knowing if I'm doing enough. Not knowing if anything I do makes a difference. Is it even possible to win this war.? And of course I worry every bloody day about Remus. Uncertainty is gnawing inside me, pumping my heart faster and making it hard to breathe. And it feels endless. Is there any hope?

I encounter Harry on one corridor, He seems surprised to see me. Gosh I must look like a wreck. He asks what I'm doing here, and I tell him that I was hoping to see Dumbledore. He then asks me if I know where Dumbledore has gone. No idea. When he asks why I wanted to see the Headmaster I find myself hesitant. Harry has enough on his plate without hearing me going on about a werewolf on a suicide mission. Still I can't help asking him if he has gotten any letters from someone in the Order. Maybe Remus has managed to write him?

When he answers that no one in the Order writes to him anymore, I feel those damn tears blurring my vision. _Anymore? Did Remus write him before? Oh Merlin.._.Whatever Harry is saying goes completely unheard by me.

"What?" I manage "Well I'll see you later Harry"

I turn quicky around and walk away trying to keep the tears from falling. I hate myself acting this way, but living day after day in this uncertain haze and not knowing what terrible things are on their way is frankly, hell.

 **A/N: Sorry for the long pause,I have been battling my own uncertainties. I have always thought that there where many reasons for Tonks acting the way she did. Remus and his idiocy were the main reason of course, but I think the reality of war was dawning on her (She was so young and inexperienced in OOTP) and not being able to be someone you love and find together the strenght to carry on must been hard. And talk about those Dementors everywhere..**


	5. Falling

**FALLING**

She's falling.

And for the first time in her life it's not because she has two left feet.

She has never met someone quite like him. There's something special about him, and no, it's not the fact he turns into a wolf once a month.

He's just so... _him_.

She loves spending time with him, hearing him speak with that slightly hoarse voice. The wisdom he possesses, captivates her. The way he treats her with respect and interest makes it so great interacting with him; he makes her she feel more steady.

He's her friend, and the banter they share never fails to lift her spirits.

Yes, she could list all the reasons she likes in him; kind, smart, thoughtful, quetly humourus, and yet she still can't exactly pinpoint what it is about him that she finds so irrestible.

All she knows everytime he smiles that slightly lopsided smile of his and looks at her with his gentle amber eyes, there's butterflies dancing in her stomach and her heartbeat seems too quick to be healthy.

Oh, yes she's falling pretty hard.

 _A/N: Hello again! It's really annoying to notice little errors in writing in the previous chapters, I hope they aren't too annoying and don't make reading too disconcerting. I try fix them in the future. And as always, all feedback is welcome :)_


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